Duterte unfazed by US aid cut to Philippines

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he is unfazed by the decision of the United States aid agency to cut a multimillion aid to the Philippines over concerns on “rule of law and civil liberties”.

“We’ll be glad to lose it,” Xinhua news agency quoted Duterte as saying on Friday in Singapore before taking the flight back to the Philippines, adding that he is not bothered at all by the decision of the Millennium Challenge Corporation not to renew its grant amounting to $430 million.

Duterte urged the US poverty reduction aid agency to pack and leave the country.

“I also suggest that they start packing. Pack your things and leave maybe in six months or so,” Duterte said. Duterte said Filipinos will not go hungry without the US aid.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the aid agency said it had “deferred” a vote on the resection of the Philippines for compact development, “subject to a further review of concerns around rule of law and civil liberties”.